Tigers' bench with Prince Fielder, (center) late in the game, as the San Francisco Giants went on to beat the Detroit Tigers 2-0 to take game three of the World Series, on Saturday Oct. 27, 2012 , in Detroit, Michigan. The Giants now lead the series 3-0.

- The Giants have turned the World Series into a demolition project, ruthless and unforgiving. They've crushed everything but the Tigers' spirit, and in certain corners of the Detroit clubhouse Saturday night, even that seemed absent.

Manager Jim Leyland walked briskly into the postgame interview room, forthright in his assessment. Prince Fielder offered some wit and perspective, and Delmon Young was downright comical. There were signs, though, of a badly beaten team - one that had to win Game 3 of the World Series and came up short.

Justin Verlander, who won't get another start if the Giants sweep, was hardly his congenial self. Politely but firmly, he blew off reporters in the clubhouse, saying, "I've got family waiting."

Perhaps that wasn't so surprising, but Miguel Cabrera's vanishing act was both uncharacteristic and disappointing. Here's a man who was honored before the game with the Hank Aaron Award, signifying the top offensive performance in the American League, and both Aaron and Frank Robinson were on hand to celebrate Cabrera's becoming the first man to win the Triple Crown (.330, 44 homers, 139 RBIs) since 1967.

Cabrera was the media's prime target, as well. Of all the big pitches thrown by Ryan Vogelsong, none was more significant than a fastball with the bases loaded and two out in the fifth, popped up by Cabrera to end the inning.

By all accounts, including one submitted by the Tigers' public-relations staff, Cabrera dressed quickly and left the ballpark without being interviewed. Perhaps there wasn't much he could say, but he forced others in the room to do the talking.

Leyland, for one, wasn't hearing of Cabrera letting down the team on that key at-bat. "We don't point fingers at anyone in particular," he said. "We say as a team that we didn't get it done. That's the way we've operated since I've been here, and that's the way we'll always operate."

As for the Tigers' chances, Leyland said, "We're down 3-0, so it looks pretty bad. You really don't have to tell these guys anything; they can count."

Fielder, known as a hothead in his early days with the Milwaukee Brewers, has grown into a more thoughtful, measured type. He spent quite a bit of time with the media, giving the Giants a ton of credit. "Frustrated? We're definitely not giddy about it," he said. "I sure don't go home imagining being down 0-3 in the World Series."

So how would he address the team? "There's really nothing to say. All that pep-talk stuff is for 'Hoosiers,' the movies. That's not real life. We've been prepared to play these games, but we don't get to write the script."

This was the 31st World Series game ever played in the gritty, blue-collar setting of downtown Detroit, and it ranked with the most depressing. The streets crackled with positive energy beforehand, excited fans bundled up against the cold, figuring a return to Comerica Park would revitalize a team that outlasted the Oakland A's and completely humiliated the New York Yankees in recent weeks.

It was a calm and confident man wearing short sleeves, Vogelsong, who made sure the Tigers remained unrecognizable to their fans. Twice in the first three innings, Vogelsong got double-play grounders to erase two-on, one-out jams. He was spotting his pitches so perfectly, catcher Buster Posey rarely had to move the target. And if a single inning defined Vogelsong and the Giants' command of this series, it was the potentially harrowing fifth.

With the bases loaded and one out, Vogelsong blew a fastball past an overmatched rookie, Quintin Berry, for strike three. Then came the most feared hitter in baseball, and what a matchup: Cabrera, an icon in this game since the day he broke into the Florida Marlins' lineup at the age of 20, against Vogelsong, who spent nearly a decade on the fringes, armed with a suitcase and a wife, Nicole, who never gave up hope.

A lesser man might have nibbled at the outside corners, hoping for a miracle. Vogelsong challenged Cabrera with an up-and-in fastball, a pitch that could go horribly wrong, and got him on a popup to shortstop Brandon Crawford. There was so much left in this game, but in essence, it ended right there.

Later, someone asked Young if the Tigers had any mood-changing options. "What, like sacrificing a chicken or something?" he said. "Naw. We've still got guys laughing, joking around, just like always. We're always the same in here."

But not on the field. Not with their reputation turned to dust by the Giants on a cold, windy night. It's supposed to be even chillier on Sunday, but the Tigers need no more evidence. Their winter has arrived early.